Chapter 8: The Dangers of The Trip
Night was just turning to day and the witch's sleigh was very close to the stone table. Borias had dozed off and so had the kid. He was shivering from the cold which strangely seemed to be turning warmer. Xena looked at the snow passing by that the sleigh was carving through. Through the corner of her eye she spotted a small indent in the snow, dozens of small indents. She looked directly at them and they curved in the direction that the sleigh was going. They were foot prints.
" Stop!" She yelled. The sleigh was brought to a delayed stop and it made Borias jump in his sleep as well as woke Edmund up.
" What is it now?" The witch asked tartly. Xena pointed at the tracks, the rays of the now rising sun illuminating them and casting shadows in the holes.
" Tracks." Xena said.
" Yes and they're headed in the direction we are." Jadis said. " That was the reason I wanted to gather the army at the river, the children need to get past it to go to the stone table."
" Oh." Was all Xena could say as the sled took off again.
XXX
The three children trudged wearily in the shin deep snow. They were nearing the river, only about a quarter mile away now from what the beavers said. They walked along more silently. Then a sound began to steadily become louder, the sound of bells on a sleigh. Then out of the trees to their left flew a huge oak sleigh led by reindeer and in it sat a plump man clutching a small cordial or something red and below his feet were two sheathed weapons, a dagger and a sword, as well as a quiver with red feathered arrows and a white and golden bow. This was father Christmas, known now a days as Santa Claus but that is beside the point.
The man jumped out of his sled in front of the smiling beavers and children picking up the items that were out of bag.
" Bless my soul, I never though I would see this day." Mrs. Beaver said.
" Christmas back in Narnia!" exclaimed Mr. Beaver.
" Yes beavers, but winter is almost over and I must be brief." Said the man. He turned to the three children and extended the sword to Peter's hand.
" The time to use this my be closer than you think." He said.
" Thank you." Said Peter, then he received a shield with a lion painted on it. The man the turned to Susan and gave her the quiver and bow.
" Susan, trust in this bow. It shall not easily miss."
" Aren't battle's supposed to be ugly affairs?"
The man burst out laughing and produced a horn from his pocket.
" Here, blow on this whenever you need help, and it will come."
" Thank you."
Then the man turned to Lucy and handed her the two remaining items. The cordial and the dagger.
" This is the juice of the fire flower." He said. " One drop will cure any injury. And I do hope you will not have to use this, take the dagger."
" Thank you sir."
" You are all welcome. Now remember these are tools, not toys so bear them well. Sorry I don't have anything for you beavers. But I must go now, winter is almost over." The man said grunting his last words and taking off again on his rain deer carried sleigh.
" He's right." Peter said. " Winter is almost over, it's already hot outside. And that means, no more ice to cross over."
XxX
It was indeed getting much hotter out now then it had been. So hot that the snow had begun to melt and the three children had shed their coats. They were hoping to make it to the river they had to cross in time before it melted. Sadly they did not, when they reached the edge of it (which was high on a cliff by a still semi frozen waterfall.) the river was flowing. The children looked down sadly but the beavers didn't seem to think it was much of a problem.
" Why the long faces? First swim of the season! This'll be fun!" Mr. Beaver exclaimed.
" Fun for you." Peter grumbled. " We aren't exactly accomplished swimmers."
No one in the group replied to Peter though. They all froze when another white sleigh came sliding up to them. Everyone backed up behind Peter as a black haired woman jumped out shouting some sort of war cry and drawing a curved blade. Behind her in the sleigh stood a taller woman and the beavers gasped as she too walked out and a man followed her, his hair was black like the woman's and he had a small mustache. And as he stepped out the three Pevenise's could clearly see their brother Edmund sitting in the back of the thing. And a little dwarf was sitting on a tall seat with a whip in hand above the rain deer.
" Let my brother go." Peter said drawing his own blade and pointing it at the woman who had jumped out of the sleigh. Everyone backed up behind Peter as she came closer.
" You are in no position to demand anything." The woman snapped. The children didn't reply.
" And just who the bloody hell are you?" snapped Mr. Beaver.
" Shut it animal or I'll use your skin as an addition to my clothes." The woman spat. " But the name's Xena."
" Let my brother go Xena." Peter said more confidently.
" And if I don't?" Xena mused.
" I'll take him." Peter said. The witch and the man behind Xena chuckled.
" Kill them Xena." The witch said. " I want to bring their bleeding corpses to Aslan."
Peter and the four beings behind him glared at Edmund who had most certainly told Jadis about Aslan. Xena raised her blade while Peter was turning his head back to her and brought it down. Amazingly the little teenager raised his shield to parry the blow. Xena was not impressed however when his arms quivered by her strength.
" Nice kid." She said. " But you're small and weak, quick reflexes aren't going to get you out of this."
She thrust another potentially devastating blow at him and this time he parried with his sword. Rather desperately though. Xena scowled and launched a series of attacks which were all parried. Jadis looked at her oddly.
" Will you just kill the little brats!"
" I want to see him fight." Xena snapped. Quickly taking a chance Peter struck at Xena. In a roar of rage his attack was not only blocked by her but her sword roughly guided his over his head and down so that he lost his grip of it. Then she kicked him hard in the stomach. He fell backwards through the crowd off the ledge and into the river below, his blade with him.
" Anyone else want to take another cheap shot like that!" Xena cried. Then she raised her blade. Quickly and without hesitation the two children and two beavers propelled themselves straight off the cliff and into the water.
Xena cursed at the top of her lungs. Jadis and Borias ran up to her and looked down. The children were swimming down the river. Ahead they could see Peter pulling himself onto shore.
" It is of no matter." Jadis said. " They'll die soon anyway."
Suddenly a cry of pain was heard. The three villains looked around at their sleigh. Edmund had taken the witch's wand and hit the dwarf in the back of the head with it. He had Borias's sword which he had used to cut his bonds in his right hand. Quickly Xena reached for her Chakram. It wasn't there. Before she knew what was happening the boy hurled it at Borias. It hit him in the head and bounced back. Xena smiled she knew the boy could not catch it. Many could throw it. But as it headed back the boy jumped out of its way and off the cliff as well as the Chakram lodged itself into a tree.
The witch cried in utter fury as Edmund hit the water and joined his family.